I've always been a pellet hop brewer but my last IPA was a mess when dry hopping so I decided to use 2oz of Cascade whole hops. 1st time with whole hops and I forgot to add them to the secondary before I racked. Whole hops are interesting but will these absorb into the beer and settle in eventually? I probably have 1+ inches of dry (meant not in beer) hops going there...
Whole Dry Hopping
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They will soak in eventually, may take a couple days. Some people like to put them in a bag with some marbles, so they sink sooner, but that doesn't work very well if you use carboys.
Dry hopping with pellets is ugly! I like them for bittering and sometimes flavor, but I stick with whole hops for aroma and dry hopping.
Dry hopping with pellets is ugly! I like them for bittering and sometimes flavor, but I stick with whole hops for aroma and dry hopping.
david_42 said:
Cool, thanks. Yea, my 1st couple of dry-hopped brews with pellets weren't too bad; maybe cuz it was a little warmer ferment (72 ish) but the last one after three weeks still had them suspended all over the place but I had to keg it. Looked like you were eating salad or spinach if you smiled after indulging in a pint or two :cross:.
Sir Sudster
Well-Known Member
Whole hops will get wet and float. They will also expand a bit when they get wet.
I always put my whole hops in a hop bag and it will eventually sink.
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Sir Sudster
Well-Known Member
Yeah, kind of like moss growing on your beer. . When your done just rack the beer to a keg or bottling bucket and you'll leave most of it behind.
Tony
Well-Known Member
I just add them to the secondary. Simple enough, and they soak up the wort easy, do their job easily.
Also, for adding whole hops to kegs without any hassles, I use a tea infuser ball, which is a 3" round mesh ball that can be open and clasped closed. You can pack a good amount in them.
Also, for adding whole hops to kegs without any hassles, I use a tea infuser ball, which is a 3" round mesh ball that can be open and clasped closed. You can pack a good amount in them.
desertBrew said:Read on BYO that they can be a bit testy getting out if you put em in a hop bag while using a carboy. Agree? They do look cool just hangin out in there right now
That's why I let the beer go through a complete secondary, and dry hop in the keg. Much easier to deal with. During the time it takes for the beer to carb up enough in the keg (5-7 days), I remove the dry hops. Any longer than that and it gets too grassy tasting.
Editorial Opinion
After doing a 2 oz whole dry hop in my 5g carboy it seemed to be overkill. It looked liked 1 oz of it was just suspended in air. Unless I shift to the tea infuser ball and dry hop in the keg I can't see where more than 1oz is going to accomplish anything...
After doing a 2 oz whole dry hop in my 5g carboy it seemed to be overkill. It looked liked 1 oz of it was just suspended in air. Unless I shift to the tea infuser ball and dry hop in the keg I can't see where more than 1oz is going to accomplish anything...
Janx
Well-Known Member
I've added up to 5 or 6 ounces to a demijohn, and the all eventually soak up some beer. Try rocking it back and forth gently to get them to settle into the liquid. Once they are wet, they'll sink in a bit.
I've left them like that for months with no ill effect (but lots of good effect).
I also like them just floating on top like that. Besides looking cool, they provide an oxygen/bacteria barrier.
Cheers
I've left them like that for months with no ill effect (but lots of good effect).
I also like them just floating on top like that. Besides looking cool, they provide an oxygen/bacteria barrier.
Cheers
Janx said:I've added up to 5 or 6 ounces to a demijohn, and the all eventually soak up some beer. Try rocking it back and forth gently to get them to settle into the liquid. Once they are wet, they'll sink in a bit.
I've left them like that for months with no ill effect (but lots of good effect).
I also like them just floating on top like that. Besides looking cool, they provide an oxygen/bacteria barrier.
Cheers
I was thinking of the gentle rock and did that a little bit but it didn't seem to help too much. I forgot to add hops 1st then rack and maybe that gets them "wetter" than my rack then add. Taste test was outstanding though (1st whole hop usage).
Does look cool; friends were intrigued
Brewiz
Well-Known Member
I just had a similar problem with my first ag. I put 1 oz of whole leaf Simcoe in the secondary and they seemed to soak up a lot of beer but I was still not sure if it would have enough hoppy nose to it, so I started looking for a tea ball to put in the keg. When I did find one I didn't think it was going to be big enough for 1 oz of leaf hops, so I kept looking for something else. What I found was a stainless convectionary suger shaker with a screw on sreen mesh lid. I bought it came home and drill some small hloes in the opposite end of it. When I transfered to the keg I was right it didn't have enough nose for me so I put 1 oz of Amarillo leaf in my shaker and put it in the keg. After being in the fridge and carbonated for about 10 days now it is pretty good, lots of good hoppy aroma..
